I was first introduced to Roald Dahl's story writing during my time in Primary School back in the early 80s. My teacher at that time, Miss McMurdo read three of his story books to us; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach and Danny the Champion of the World.
Not long before she had read Danny the Champion of the World to us, I'd stayed with my Aunty and Uncle in Skelmersdale. Whilst there I had been on several early morning woodland walks with my older cousin up at the Beacon Country Park and so listening to the story in class afterwoods, as my teacher narrated Danny's adventure into Mr. Hazel's woodland estate in search of his missing Dad, I envisaged him walking through woodlands similar to the one that I'd walked through only weeks before.
Being able to see that woodland in my head made the story feel more real to me and I as I continued to listen I was completly enthralled. Due to this, for me Danny the Champion of the World was the best of those three Roald Dahl stories we had heard and is is probably why it has remained my favourite book ever since.
Danny illustrated by Quentin Blake
THE STORY
Danny, who's Mum died suddenly when he was only four months old lives in an old caravan behind the service station and garage that his Father William owns and operates. Him and his Father are very close and enjoy many pastimes together such as kite flying and making go karts.
Danny learns that his Father is an avid poacher and is poaching pheasants from the local Wood which is owned by the obnoxious and wealthy gentleman named Victor Hazell.
Soon afterwards, Danny awakes in the early hours one morning to discover that his Father hasn't returned from his latest poaching trip. Worried, Danny nervously takes a car that had been repaired at the garage and sets off to look for his Dad in the nearby Wood.
Unaware that the Gamekeepers leave after sunset, he sneaks into the Wood and eventually finds his Father incapacitated with a suspected broken ankle in a trap which has been set for humans. Danny rescues his Father and drives him back home.
Whilst his Father recovers at home, he and Danny realise that Mr Hazell's annual pheasant shoot is approaching and so they devise a plan to humiliate him by poaching all his pheasants just before his self-aggrandizing shoot.
To do this they hide sleeping pills in raisins which the pheasants will eat and they then scatter them in Mr. Hazell's Wood. Soon they succesfully capture 120 pheasants and Danny and his Father take a taxi to the local vicarage where they hide the birds.
The following day the sleeping pheasants are delivered to Danny's Father's garage by the Vicar's wife in a specially made baby pram. The birds start waking up and flying out of the pram but don't go far because they're still sleepy.
During the comotion a raging Mr. Hazell turns up and confronts Danny and his Father accusing them of stealing his pheasants. With the help of the local village policeman, Danny and his Father are able to shoo the sleepy birds over Mr. Hazell's Rolls-Royce damaging the paintwork in the process.
As Mr. Hazell leaves disgraced many of the pheasants start waking up completely and soon fly off in the opposite direction to Mr. Hazell's Wood.
The book ends with Danny's Father hailing Danny as "the champion of the world".
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